An Emergency Water Epiphany
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Flashlight Enthusiast
Just a small footnote to this great thread, I use LCI / specter water cans. They are not cheap (thought sometimes you can find a great deal on them used) but they are mil spec and seemingly indestructible. I think you can drive a car over one without damage.
They make both 2.5 and 5 gallon versions and a few different colors like tan, blue, black, green.
They are not cost-effective and don't replace a huge water tank, but they easy to move.
They make both 2.5 and 5 gallon versions and a few different colors like tan, blue, black, green.
They are not cost-effective and don't replace a huge water tank, but they easy to move.
FensterKarton
Newly Enlightened
I suggest you get at least 1 silver coin. If you connect it to the negative lead on your power you can use any conductive material for the positive electrode. If you put a pinch of salt in a cup of water and your coin hooked to 3 or more volts into the water (and the other electrode) the white stuff you see descending is silver chloride which kills bacteria. In the absence of antibiotics you need something for wounds and infections, even illness. Silver even kills antibiotic resistant staph.
Last year my Britta water pitcher cracked, and was about to get a other one. Then I decided to study a better filter, and maybe cheaper. I stumbled on this larger gravity filter, like britta, but much more heavy duty. It's not portable, so it uses a spout instead of pouring. Berkey filters, found on amazon from 200 to about 500 each. While it costs much more than a britta, it tastes much better and filters WAY more tolerance than any other filter I found, even filtering radioactive stuff. Though costly at first, it filters around 3000 gallons (if i remember correctly) before needing a filter change. If I drink 2 gallons a day, it'd take 1500 days before refill, and I have a backup filter, so 6000 gallons I can treat.
For emergency, i do have a 120 gallon aquarium IF I NEEDED it haha. I do have 5 gallons bottles stored in the garage, and a army of 1 gallons tucked throughout the house and even 2 in my car.
best tasting water I've had.
For emergency, i do have a 120 gallon aquarium IF I NEEDED it haha. I do have 5 gallons bottles stored in the garage, and a army of 1 gallons tucked throughout the house and even 2 in my car.
best tasting water I've had.
electronFarmer
Newly Enlightened
You need to be careful drinking DeIonized or Distilled water. Because it lacks ANY dissolved chemicals it will leach chemicals OUT of your body. If you cook with it you will be fine because you are adding plenty of goodies in. Even Tea or Coffee is good. But if you count on this as your drinking water then you should add minerals. It is easy to do, just add sea salt, about a quarter teaspoon per quart. You will hardly notice any taste.
However there is a new danger to think about with sea salt. Any sea salt extracted from the Pacific Ocean is out due to Fukashima Japan's nuclear release problem. Add to this that any sea salt extracted from ANY ocean today is going to include the pollution that we, humankind, have been adding to the oceans for the last hundred years or so. This is especially true for the mediterranean sea since it is kind of land locked and we, humankind, have been polluting it for almost 2000 years. Granted that was mostly just sewage until 100 years ago when we got more serious about it.
So that leaves us with the ancient deposits such the Great Salt Lake, Utah, and the Himalayan deposits (India, Tibet, Pakistan... ). There are some other underground, protected deposits such as under Detroit and Chicago but these are usually purified before reaching market to just sodium chloride with a little added Iodine.
The blood that flows through our veins is almost chemically identical to sea water with the main difference being that our blood is composed of various organized structures, red blood cells, white blood cells, etc.
So yes, sea salt contains all of the essential minerals and in just the right ratios.
However there is a new danger to think about with sea salt. Any sea salt extracted from the Pacific Ocean is out due to Fukashima Japan's nuclear release problem. Add to this that any sea salt extracted from ANY ocean today is going to include the pollution that we, humankind, have been adding to the oceans for the last hundred years or so. This is especially true for the mediterranean sea since it is kind of land locked and we, humankind, have been polluting it for almost 2000 years. Granted that was mostly just sewage until 100 years ago when we got more serious about it.
So that leaves us with the ancient deposits such the Great Salt Lake, Utah, and the Himalayan deposits (India, Tibet, Pakistan... ). There are some other underground, protected deposits such as under Detroit and Chicago but these are usually purified before reaching market to just sodium chloride with a little added Iodine.
The blood that flows through our veins is almost chemically identical to sea water with the main difference being that our blood is composed of various organized structures, red blood cells, white blood cells, etc.
So yes, sea salt contains all of the essential minerals and in just the right ratios.
idleprocess
Flashaholic
The ocean is incredibly vast relative to the few tons of material that Fukushima incident may have deposited into it. More than five years on, the risk seems to be negligible when it comes to fish, which are known to accumulate toxins.
Fukushima isn't the only incident that's dumped radioactive isotopes into the sea - suspect the Soviets dumped orders of magnitude more into the sea during the cold war.
scout24
Flashaholic
Sub Unbra's focus here was preparedness and sharing information. It's good to see new posts here once in a while. 
Obijuan Kenobe
Flashlight Enthusiast
I feel like a big obvious first step in a crisis like this is to fill the tub. Yes, you'll run out. But as a first reaction to a big crash, filling the tub will get you a few days of water now. This should be on the 'FIRST' list.
Of course, if you have a storage plan, even better. But vacuum sealed rice, flour, and sugar...as well as a source of filtered water...you are only missing firearms.
obi
Of course, if you have a storage plan, even better. But vacuum sealed rice, flour, and sugar...as well as a source of filtered water...you are only missing firearms.
obi
StarHalo
Flashaholic
fuyume
Enlightened
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2021
- Messages
- 323
When I first moved to New England, I lived in a mountainside cabin with no plumbing, no electricity, and no communications for a year. I did, however, still have my pickup truck, then. There was an artesian spring at the base of the mountain, and I own four Blitz (RIP, stupid lawyers) 6.5 gallon jerry cans, plus I picked up a few 5 gallon cans leftover from bulk dish and laundry detergent sales at the local co-op store (which I used only for wash water). Lots of local residents use the spring, so it gets tested every so often for contaminants.
Every ounce, every milliliter of water and wastewater had to be hand carried in and out of the house. My parking area was about 1/4 mile away from the cabin, and I didn't have a wheeled cart to transport the 40 or 50 lb. jerry cans. In winter, when the snow came, I could use a pulk sled, though.
I became very familiar with water conservation, back then. The cabin had a sawdust composting toilet outhouse, which meant no water needed for flushing, but also buckets full of frozen waste and sawdust until a warm spell or the arrival of the next Spring. The cabin was heated with a single woodstove, only, and cooking was either on top of the woodstove or on a 2-burner propane camp stove.
My only way to bathe was heating up some water on one of the stoves, mixing that with room temp water to a comfortable temp (about 1 part boiling to 2 parts room temp is nice), and leaning myself over a galvanized tub to catch the runoff. At one point, I went something like 142 days without a full-body immersion.
Key to reducing water usage for bathing was making sure to clean my bottom with soap and water after every use of the toilet, and cleaning my armpits with soap and water every time I started to detect any odor. I would also keep a 1 qt Zep spray bottle filled with 70% isopropyl alcohol.
I cut up a couple of clearance shelf towels into squares for cleaning rags, which I would then wash in a 5-gallon bucket with a sink plunger, and line dry. I would use those same rags to mop my floor, using a floor scrub brush and a rag under it. I also washed my underwear with the bucket and plunger method.
A couple of times after leaving that cabin, I was homeless, living out of the back of the pickup; fortunately, both times were during the Summer. I bought a 7 gallon Reliance Aquatainer, and made a spout for it with a hose bibb. I would find a seculded area on a sunny day, prop the jerry can on top of the truck, stand on a kitchen dish drainboard to keep dirt off my feet, and shower. I could wash my whole body, including shampooing and conditioning my long hair, with about 2 gallons of water. The artesian spring made that easy, since it is on the side of the road, and I could just pull up with the truck to refill the container at any time of day or night.
I kept my dishes clean by wiping them down with paper towels (which would be composted) and washing them with Simple Green, which rinses very easily to save water. I also kept a 5-gallon bucket with a Reliance Luggable Loo top and a second 5-gallon bucket full of sawdust from one of the local mills for a portable toilet.
When the power goes out, or the water supply becomes unreliable, the two biggest uses of water in the home are always going to be toilets and showers. A couple of 5-gallon buckets with toilet seat tops (like the Luggable Loo) and a supply of raw sawdust are your best friends.
I live in an apartment in the downtown area, now, but I still keep my four Blitz and one Reliance jerry cans filled with fresh water treated with a bloop of bleach. I'm on municipal water, so I don't lose pressure when the power goes out, but the municipal water treatment system can get overtaxed if there is heavy rainfall.
And I still keep the bucket toilet gear, sawdust, and the bucket/plunger washing machine.
Every ounce, every milliliter of water and wastewater had to be hand carried in and out of the house. My parking area was about 1/4 mile away from the cabin, and I didn't have a wheeled cart to transport the 40 or 50 lb. jerry cans. In winter, when the snow came, I could use a pulk sled, though.
I became very familiar with water conservation, back then. The cabin had a sawdust composting toilet outhouse, which meant no water needed for flushing, but also buckets full of frozen waste and sawdust until a warm spell or the arrival of the next Spring. The cabin was heated with a single woodstove, only, and cooking was either on top of the woodstove or on a 2-burner propane camp stove.
My only way to bathe was heating up some water on one of the stoves, mixing that with room temp water to a comfortable temp (about 1 part boiling to 2 parts room temp is nice), and leaning myself over a galvanized tub to catch the runoff. At one point, I went something like 142 days without a full-body immersion.
Key to reducing water usage for bathing was making sure to clean my bottom with soap and water after every use of the toilet, and cleaning my armpits with soap and water every time I started to detect any odor. I would also keep a 1 qt Zep spray bottle filled with 70% isopropyl alcohol.
I cut up a couple of clearance shelf towels into squares for cleaning rags, which I would then wash in a 5-gallon bucket with a sink plunger, and line dry. I would use those same rags to mop my floor, using a floor scrub brush and a rag under it. I also washed my underwear with the bucket and plunger method.
A couple of times after leaving that cabin, I was homeless, living out of the back of the pickup; fortunately, both times were during the Summer. I bought a 7 gallon Reliance Aquatainer, and made a spout for it with a hose bibb. I would find a seculded area on a sunny day, prop the jerry can on top of the truck, stand on a kitchen dish drainboard to keep dirt off my feet, and shower. I could wash my whole body, including shampooing and conditioning my long hair, with about 2 gallons of water. The artesian spring made that easy, since it is on the side of the road, and I could just pull up with the truck to refill the container at any time of day or night.
I kept my dishes clean by wiping them down with paper towels (which would be composted) and washing them with Simple Green, which rinses very easily to save water. I also kept a 5-gallon bucket with a Reliance Luggable Loo top and a second 5-gallon bucket full of sawdust from one of the local mills for a portable toilet.
When the power goes out, or the water supply becomes unreliable, the two biggest uses of water in the home are always going to be toilets and showers. A couple of 5-gallon buckets with toilet seat tops (like the Luggable Loo) and a supply of raw sawdust are your best friends.
I live in an apartment in the downtown area, now, but I still keep my four Blitz and one Reliance jerry cans filled with fresh water treated with a bloop of bleach. I'm on municipal water, so I don't lose pressure when the power goes out, but the municipal water treatment system can get overtaxed if there is heavy rainfall.
And I still keep the bucket toilet gear, sawdust, and the bucket/plunger washing machine.
We went ~240 days without running water at my condo after the hurricane. I put our dehumidifiers up on the countertops ran their drain hoses into the toilet tanks. It worked surprisingly well. Each time we'd go out there we knew we had 4 flushes (1 each toilet) available to us. It sure beat lugging water up multiple flights of stairs from the street-side.
fuyume
Enlightened
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2021
- Messages
- 323
I should mention that my four Blitz cans are actual Water cans. I also have three Blitz Gasoline cans—used to be four, but my older brother swiped one years ago, and I never saw it again.
Back in the days just post 9/11, I used to keep the four gas cans filled and treated with stabilizer in my detached garage for my Jeep (they used to make special holders just for those particular Blitz cans) and the four water cans in the basement of my house.
That was enough gas to fill my Jeep's tank almost twice. We lived just outside of Philadelphia at the time. In later years, I lived closer to the Jersey Shore, and having those gas cans filled was especially useful when the 2011 superderecho and Hurricane Irene hit.
Both times, you couldn't buy gas for at least a week, because there was no power for the gas station pumps, but we had enough gas for our generator. Then a year later, Hurricane Sandy hit the exact same spot, and it was the same thing all over again.
That house (my mother's) now has solar on the roof and a natural gas whole house generator, but I don't live there, anymore. Unfortunately, that house now also has an on-demand water heater, so no easy reservoir of water, but it has well water, so the whole house genset will keep the pump running.
I'm still mad about the frivolous lawsuit that bankrupted the company. Blitz made excellent products, dating all the way back to WWII, and now they are no more.
Here's my four Blitz cans (bottom shelf), the Reliance can (top shelf), my stash of bicycle tires, and a pile of stuff to be given away and/or donated.
Back in the days just post 9/11, I used to keep the four gas cans filled and treated with stabilizer in my detached garage for my Jeep (they used to make special holders just for those particular Blitz cans) and the four water cans in the basement of my house.
That was enough gas to fill my Jeep's tank almost twice. We lived just outside of Philadelphia at the time. In later years, I lived closer to the Jersey Shore, and having those gas cans filled was especially useful when the 2011 superderecho and Hurricane Irene hit.
Both times, you couldn't buy gas for at least a week, because there was no power for the gas station pumps, but we had enough gas for our generator. Then a year later, Hurricane Sandy hit the exact same spot, and it was the same thing all over again.
That house (my mother's) now has solar on the roof and a natural gas whole house generator, but I don't live there, anymore. Unfortunately, that house now also has an on-demand water heater, so no easy reservoir of water, but it has well water, so the whole house genset will keep the pump running.
I'm still mad about the frivolous lawsuit that bankrupted the company. Blitz made excellent products, dating all the way back to WWII, and now they are no more.
Here's my four Blitz cans (bottom shelf), the Reliance can (top shelf), my stash of bicycle tires, and a pile of stuff to be given away and/or donated.
thermal guy
Flashaholic
Just get a water bladder for your tub. First sign of trouble fill it up and you'll have 40-50 gallons to pull off of.
Several one liter cheap bottles of purified water under the kitchen table for emergencies. Even a very roomy one-bedroom apartment like mine is still going to have limited space. Been about 3 years. Time to replace those bottles. Best part is, I can help out Elderly neighbors since a liter won't be too heavy for most of them to carry back to their apartments.
Don't forget about survival water filters. No need to store tons of water with a good filter on-hand.
I've never once encountered a situation where municipal water was completely knocked out. Even after a Cat 5 hurricane, the water supply was working for most of the area, with reduced pressure in others.
Boil water notices are far more likely, which is what I plan for. I have a couple of Sawyer Squeeze filters, along with adapters for connecting to water bottles and large bladders/bags to run them as a gravity filter.
I keep one in my carry-on and have had a few times when I've had to use it while traveling. Back in April we were out of town for a weekend and the city issued a city-wide boil water notice during the middle of the trip. No big deal, just break out the filter and life was good.
Even if the municipal system does break down, there's still plenty of places to collect questionable water which can be easily filtered. As long as it's not filled with chemicals, a survival filter will handle it.
I've never once encountered a situation where municipal water was completely knocked out. Even after a Cat 5 hurricane, the water supply was working for most of the area, with reduced pressure in others.
Boil water notices are far more likely, which is what I plan for. I have a couple of Sawyer Squeeze filters, along with adapters for connecting to water bottles and large bladders/bags to run them as a gravity filter.
I keep one in my carry-on and have had a few times when I've had to use it while traveling. Back in April we were out of town for a weekend and the city issued a city-wide boil water notice during the middle of the trip. No big deal, just break out the filter and life was good.
Even if the municipal system does break down, there's still plenty of places to collect questionable water which can be easily filtered. As long as it's not filled with chemicals, a survival filter will handle it.
Hooked on Fenix
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2007
- Messages
- 3,496
Sawyer Squeeze filter is excellent for backcountry use removing bacteria from streams and avoiding giardia. However, it doesn't work for chemicals or viruses and doesn't make the water taste any better. If your tap has coilform bacteria from a boil water order, it'll work. If your tap is shut off and you're drinking from water running down your street mixed with gas and sewage, it won't do. For that you need a good purifier. Something like a Katadyn Pocket filter with carbon filter cartridge plus a Steripen for viruses, a Lifestraw Mission Purifier, or a Renovo MUV Eclipse system.
For backcountry use, I actually prefer the MSR Trailshot filter to the Sawyer Squeeze as it has no cheap bags to fail and doesn't require you to keep some clean water in reserve to backwash the filter. It helps to have empty soda bottles and the coupling kit for them that now comes with many Squeeze filter kits for when the bags stop working. I also like the Lifestraw Peak water filter as a backup. Can be screwed to a two liter soda or smaller Smart water bottle rather than drinking straight from stream. Can also be used as inline filter for hydration pack. For two or three people on a trail, the Sawyer Squeeze is great with that 3 liter per minute flow rate. Sawyer Minis and Lifestraw Peaks should be handed out to family members like candy in an emergency.
For backcountry use, I actually prefer the MSR Trailshot filter to the Sawyer Squeeze as it has no cheap bags to fail and doesn't require you to keep some clean water in reserve to backwash the filter. It helps to have empty soda bottles and the coupling kit for them that now comes with many Squeeze filter kits for when the bags stop working. I also like the Lifestraw Peak water filter as a backup. Can be screwed to a two liter soda or smaller Smart water bottle rather than drinking straight from stream. Can also be used as inline filter for hydration pack. For two or three people on a trail, the Sawyer Squeeze is great with that 3 liter per minute flow rate. Sawyer Minis and Lifestraw Peaks should be handed out to family members like candy in an emergency.
Hurricane Helene is all in the news these past couple of days. The immediate needs of most people who are affected are... you guessed it - food and WATER.
Of course it made me think of this thread.
Of course it made me think of this thread.
Kestrel
Flashaholic
A pic from earlier this year; have filled the last two milk crate columns by now, with about 100 gallons of tapwater in total. 4 drops of bleach per gallon have been added, to extend their shelf life. The oatmilk jugs are free from a friend, and have proven to be more reliable than standard water jugs. Not shown was a 5 gallon dedicated water jug behind the crates, which of course started leaking at some point last year and lost about half of its contents before I noticed; smaller food-grade jugs are the way to go for redundancy, IMO.
I actually think that this thread is the most important one in the whole forum, with regards to content being necessary for survival. RIP Sub_; his illumination-related posts are absolutely top-shelf as well, with his illumination-related Katrina thread being as insightful as this thread. I miss him. 🕯️
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